Start year off on right side of law

STOCKTON - Local law enforcement agencies are offering tips to help holiday revelers ring in the new year safely while warning that failure to do so could result in heavy fines and jail time.

Jason Anderson

STOCKTON - Local law enforcement agencies are offering tips to help holiday revelers ring in the new year safely while warning that failure to do so could result in heavy fines and jail time.

Officer Joe Silva, a spokesman for the Stockton Police Department, said drunken drivers and celebratory gunfire represent two of the biggest threats to people's personal safety.

"As the New Year's festivities approach, the police department wants everyone to have a safe and happy new year," Silva said. "We want everyone to have a good time with family and friends, and to ensure this, we are asking people to designate a driver and not drink and drive. The Police Department is also directing people not to fire any weapons, because celebratory gunfire is illegal and dangerous."

Authorities said collisions involving drunken drivers have claimed 27 lives and resulted in 292 injury crashes hurting 410 people on area roadways over the past three years. A multiagency DUI task force stopped 70 vehicles, arrested six people on suspicion of driving under the influence, issued 16 citations and impounded eight vehicles in Lodi on Friday.

There are other DUI checkpoints and saturation patrols scheduled in Lodi, Manteca, Stockton and Tracy in the coming days. Additionally, the California Highway Patrol is observing a maximum enforcement period that started at 6 p.m. Friday and ends at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday.

The CHP recommends designating a driver before drinking. Those who don't have a designated driver can call a taxi, use public transportation or call a friend or relative. The CHP also urges motorists to call 911 to report suspected drunken drivers.

"Now is the time of year when celebrations increase as well as the chance of encountering an impaired driver," CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow said. "One way to keep everyone safe and reduce the odds of spending the holidays in jail is to designate a nondrinking driver in advance. Your life may depend on it."